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Movie, music, TV and tech news as seen and heard from the "heart of it all."

Back to school, not so special

By: Jared Rutecki

The Columbus Dispatch - September 28, 2012 10:45 AM

Liberal Arts is the latest effort from Bexley native Josh Radnor. It is a romantic comedy
set at Radnor's idyllic alma mater Kenyon College in Gambier, Ohio. Though Kenyon isn't named in
the movie, it is featured prominently.

While
Liberal Arts has the ingredients to make a successful film, the immaturity of the main
character stifles the development of the plot.

"
Liberal Arts is less a romance than a character study of a man reluctant to embrace
full-blown adulthood. That creates a huge problem: Jesse is so hesitant and stumbling that the
movie stumbles with him, holding itself back from any ill-mannered behavior," critic Frank Gabrenya
said in his review.

The few people who think that Joseph Gordon-Levitt looks like a young Bruce Willis should find
themselves at home with
Looper, an action flick rooted in time travel. Luckily for those who think the two could
never be mistaken for one another, the action sequences should give them enough fuel to overcome
their problems with the actors' distinct looks.

The science-fiction story inhabits a world where Gordon-Levitt meets a time travelling version
of himself (played by Willis) from the future. Both characters play Joe, a mafia hit man. Future
Joe uses time travel to kill people in the past when paid by the mob.

The blurry boundaries and nonstop action make
Looper a successful jaunt.

"
Looper succeeds by building layers of moral complexity. The balancing act between dark
humor and scenes of unbearable tension is handled nicely," critic Scott Gowans said in his
review.